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With the Miami Heat's full schedule released for the 2025-26 season, there is no doubt major excitement from the fanbase about how the team will bounce back from a frustrating ending to the year prior. As fans prepare for the can't-miss games on the Heat's schedule, one aspect that will be fascinating is the team preparing for the league's in-season tournament, fighting for the NBA Cup.
Along with the start of the regular season, it will be the third straight year that the association is implementing the NBA Cup as Miami looks to take some hardware home with them. The Heat have been placed in Group C of the Eastern Conference along with other teams such as the Charlotte Hornets, the New York Knicks, the Chicago Bulls, and the Milwaukee Bucks.
The quest for the NBA Cup starts in November 🏆
Sign up for early access to tickets – https://t.co/vXHOvAV6a5 pic.twitter.com/XrzozTQfj4
— Miami HEAT (@MiamiHEAT) August 13, 2025
Miami will be in group stage games against the teams listed, where it will be two at the Kaseya Center and two on the road, as eight teams will make it to the knockout rounds.
“Eight teams will advance to the Knockout Rounds: the team with the best standing in Group Play games in each of the six groups and one ‘wild card' team from each conference,” NBA.com says. “The wild card will be the team from each conference with the best record in Group Play games that finished second in its group.”
The Heat haven't made it to the knockout stages in each of the past two seasons. Here are game-by-game predictions for the team's Group C in the NBA Cup.
Miami Heat vs. Charlotte Hornets on Nov. 7
As the team has made changes like the Heat trading Haywood Highsmith to get under the luxury tax, the Hornets have had an interesting offseason to say the least. There is no doubt that there is a youth movement in Charlotte, led by star guard LaMelo Ball, but he is joined by other up-and-comers like Brandon Miller, Tre Mann, plus the two rookies from the latest NBA Draft in Duke's Kon Knueppel and Liam McNeely.
While the future looks relatively promising for the Hornets, Miami is still the better team in most facets that would have them win the game based on roster, coaching, etc. This contest will be interesting for the Heat since it will be eight games of seeing how well the new additions work with each other, more so, Norman Powell.
As Miami traded for Powell from the Los Angeles Clippers, the team added a much-needed gutpunch on offense to pair with Tyler Herro and Bam Adebayo. This game may very well be a litmus test for how well the new look will play with one another.
Still, the Heat should beat the Hornets here, though it could be easy to see a close game, but the home team pulls this one out.
Miami Heat vs. New York Knicks on Nov. 14
Miami's NBA Cup journey continues with a contest against the New York Knicks on Nov. 14 in Madison Square Garden, as it will be a slightly new look for the opposing team. However, the difference is more so on the sideline as the team unexpectedly let go of head coach Tom Thibodeau and hired Mike Brown this offseason.
On the other hand, New York still has a talented core filled with stars such as Jalen Brunson, Karl Anthony-Towns, Mikal Bridges, and more. While the Heat have posed trouble for the Knicks and led to tough games as it has been in this Eastern Conference rivalry for decades, the last results of the games tell a different story.
In the last three years, New York has beaten Miami seven times out of nine games in the regular season, and even last season, the opponents swept them. The intrigue of the Heat still lingers in how Powell will work with not just Herro and Adebayo, but also Andrew Wiggins, as the ball can't always go around perfectly.
Especially against a high-powered team like the Knicks, Miami needs to be tough on the defensive side of the ball, and while that has been its forte, losing Highsmith is a huge move in that regard. For this game, the Heat will drop this one.
Miami Heat vs. Chicago Bulls on Nov. 21
While the Bulls poked fun at the Heat with the statue of Dwyane Wade outside the Kaseya Center, joining a portion of the internet, the two teams face off on Nov. 21 with NBA Cup implications. The two teams had some battles last season, but in the same vein against the Knicks, Miami was on the wrong end of the stick.
First bucket unlocks the NBA schedule: GO.@ATT | #SeeRed pic.twitter.com/dC8bWAuvSL
— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) August 14, 2025
In the three games that Miami and Chicago faced in the regular season, the latter won all of them, but this is arguably negated due to the last contest that the two teams faced each other in. With the Heat finishing 10th in the Eastern Conference and the Bulls at ninth, the two met in the NBA play-in tournament.
Though the play-in tournament has only been around since 2020, there has been no 10th seed to get through the tourney, since the team in the placement has a massive disadvantage in playing on the road. However, Miami would rewrite the narrative and make it to the NBA Playoffs with the first win being against Chicago, locking down their fast-paced offense and also being efficient onthea end of the ball.
For the NBA Cup group game, Bulls fans will get deja vu as the Heat will use the same formula to take them down.
Miami Heat vs. Milwaukee Bucks on Nov. 26
The Heat have been connected to the Bucks in rumors in regards to different aspects in the offseason, ranging from the ongoing speculation to Giannis Antetokounmpo's future to the team possibly signing Damian Lillard after he was waived. Fast forward to the present, and Lillard is back with his original team in the Portland Trail Blazers, and Antetokounmpo is still with Milwaukee, for now.
Every time the Heat and the Bucks face one another, it always makes for an entertaining game, but last season's results painted a different picture. Having deja vu? Milwaukee swept Miami last season in the four games they played, one of them being an NBA Cup group stage game on Nov. 26 of last year, thanks to Lillard's 37 points that night.
While the Heat look different with the aforementioned addition of Powell and even the departures like Duncan Robinson, the Bucks also look different. Besides Lillard being cut, the team used that money and signed star big man Myles Turner, coming off another productive season with the Indiana Pacers.
It will be a battle of the bigs on each team as Antetokounmpo and Turner will look to provide trouble to not just Adebayo, but also Kel'el Ware, coming off an impressive rookie season and heading into his second year. This will be a close one, as most games between these two teams are, but Milwaukee will squeak by in what could be a big game from Antetokounmpo.
Miami Heat finish 2-2 in NBA Cup group play
As the predicted results suggest, the Heat will finish 2-2 in group play, which will be the third straight season in a row finishing with that record. Both times meant that Miami didn't cut the knockout stage, even as a wild card.
The same goes for this year, though fans might not be too worried since they debate that the stakes are too low and not like actual meaningful play in the postseason. At any rate, Miami is looking to improve after finishing with a 37-45 record, which put them 10th in the Eastern Conference as the team starts the preseason in Puerto Rico on Oct. 4 against the Orlando Magic.
The Heat will also start the regular season against the Magic on Oct. 22.
